Ronit J

If you’d like to read Part 1 of my Fantasy Bingo post, click here.

As mentioned in my first post (which was roughly 6 months ago), this challenge has greatly improved my reading speed. I typically read 20 books a year, but this year, thanks to Fantasy Bingo, I’ve read over 30 since January. And the majority of those have been since April 1st. I’ll admit, that also includes novellas and short stories, but even you just count the full-length novels, I’m at 27, with more than a month to go in 2023.

Seeing my bingo card fill up is motivation enough to keep reading (among a lot of other things). However, this second stretch has had a bit of a slowdown.

The first stretch (3 months) – I read 9 novels (8 novels, 1 novella) in 3 months. This isn’t counting the 2 non-bingo books or the manga volumes.

1-month break – read 3 non-SFF novels.

The second stretch (4 months) — I read a lot more non-bingo books and ended up moving books around squares to accommodate new TBR entries. At the beginning of this stretch, I could sense myself wanting to read some books, but second-guessing because they weren’t eligible for bingo.

However, about a month into this stretch, I stopped caring and just read what I wanted to. So, here are my quick thoughts on the books I read in the second stretch [in the order in which I read them] —

I got an eARC of this book before launch and devoured this book in about a week. I would’ve finished it in a single sitting, maybe two, but work and life had a lot happening then.

This is by far one of the best books I’ve read all year. A perfect mix of characters, plot, world-building & and theme with an un-put-down-able pacing. A near-perfect read! [I had a very minor subjective issue with a very minor plot point that wasn’t big enough to remove even 0.01 points from my rating.]

Read my full review here.

I loved the Poppy War. I didn’t have a problem with the weird pacing or extreme gore. However, TDR wasn’t nearly as fun. The pacing especially was completely off for me. I was frustrated with the drag in the first third and kept wanting to skip parts. The characters also felt a little off to me, and that made it harder to keep reading. I love the setting and will finish the trilogy for the sake of completion, but TDR was a step down from the first book. Now, if I re-read TPW, I might not enjoy it as much as I did originally.

Read my full review here.

This was a wonderful read! Finished it over two sessions before bedtime, and was the perfect, dream-like storytelling session I needed before sleeping. The writing especially stood out for me, and I will definitely pick up the sequels in time!

Note: In part 1, I had put ‘This Is How You Lose The Time War’ in the novella square, but later I moved it to the Multi-verse square because I couldn’t find another multi-verse book that interested me enough. But I found a read of novellas that could easily replace the sqaure, so it made sense to make the switch.

Read my full review here.

I love Daniel Greene’s content and have read every single book he’s released. The cover and blurb of Neon Ghosts is what made me want to pick it up. I went in with low expectations and was still left wanting more. On one hand, I loved how he created an atmosphere of this cyberpunk dystopian future, but on the other, there was a lot left to be desired in terms of characters, pacing, plot and closure. I just didn’t vibe with the protagonist, making it tough to enjoy this book.

Our Dishevelled Goblin has improved as an author in many ways, but he needs a stricter editor to weed out all the bad and smooth out all the rough edges.

Read my full review here.

This was the most fun book I’ve read all year. Does a full Tarantino in borrowing from several popular media and making them its own. I absolutely enjoyed this book, and have already pre-ordered the sequel, which is going to release on December 5.

Read my full review here.

I didn’t like No Heart For A Thief. I found it quite disappointing, especially the lack of closure and the cliffhanger in the end.

NSH improved on all my complaints from book 1, and then added more to its experience. I did sign up for the eARC because I was curious to see how Dulin took the story forward. The characters and worldbuilding in NHFAT were really well done. I’m glad I decided to read the sequel. Really looking forward to the final part of the trilogy!

Read my full review here.

I wasn’t going to include any mangas for the bingo card, but this is Berserk we’re talking about. Also, I think the number of pages makes up for a single square.

Berserk started off slow and blah, but ended up being so beautifully disturbing that it’s up in my best manga list now. I especially loved the way Miura has explored trauma with his stellar artwork. Yes, there are several problematic elements in Berserk and it’s very much valid for people to not want to read this series because of those. However, those didn’t bother me enough to abandon the series, and I look forward to seeing how this story ends.

RIP Miura.

If I hadn’t read Hounded this year, I’d say this was the worst book I read. But that wouldn’t be fair, because I can recognise the positives of GTN. I can see why people love this book and hold it in high regard, and that’s why I gave it an objective 3 stars instead of a subject 1 star.

The writing style just wasn’t for me. Nor did I vibe with the characters. I finished it because I loved the world and setting, but I found the plot too confusing and the characters too annoying. I definitely won’t be continuing with this series.

Read my full review here.

November has been a very stressful month for me. Reading this book felt like a warm hug, like cuddling up with a warm blanket and a hot cup of chocolate. I’ve been wanting to read this book since last year, and now I’ve finally read it! Definitely lived up to the hype for me.

Read my full review here.

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I was going to read some other books for bingo, but decided to remove them for other titles.

• Lords & Ladies by Terry Pratchett [Title with a Title] — going to read Good Omens [Angels & Demons]
• Path of Daggers by Robert Jordan [Sequel] — going to read Winter’s Heart [Published in the 2000s]

I’m going to end this long post by once again just thanking this community. Y’all have introduced me to some of the best books I’ve ever read, and r/Fantasy is one of my favourite places to lurk on the internet.

Happy Reading everyone!

Note: this was first posted on the r/Fantasy subreddit on 21 Nov, 2023. You can read the post here.

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My own book is releasing on December 1! It’s an urban fantasy adventure featuring anxiety & a cute dog!

Title: Help! My Dog Is The Chosen One!

Word Count: ~70,000

Description: 

Kunal is forced to adventure…
Because his dog is the Chosen One! 

Kunal is just your average guy living on rent, working from home, and suffering from anxiety. His world is turned upside down when his girlfriend asks him to foster a rescued a street dog. Despite his qualms, Kunal agrees because, ‘What’s the worst that can happen?’

That’s when the extra-dimensional dark lord attacks.

The dog is the only one who can stop the dark lord, but he can’t do it without Kunal’s help. Can Kunal overcome his many anxieties or will our world suffer for eternity?

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My book is now available worldwide. You can select your preferred store from this universal link:

This is my first time self-publishing, and there have been more than many hiccoughs along the road. But I’m confident I can pull this off.

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Thank you for reading, and have a good day!